NEW YORK — Failing to crash the NBA Finals for the third straight season is guaranteed to cost Pistons coach Flip Saunders a fourth try.

Hold on, don't pass the collection plate just yet; Saunders is owed $5 million for next season and undoubtedly will be picked up with the rest of the recyclables before the week is out by one of the NBA many environmentally obsessed teams.

Why aren't back-to-back-to-back Final Four flushes enough to please and appease management?

Last I looked, top executive Joe Dumars and owner Bill Davidson didn't attain Hall of Fame status by settling for less than a championship.

Following the last two Eastern Conference disappointments, the pressure was turned on and up full throttle.

Going into this season, Dumars alerted Saunders and his staff and the players anything less than a title wave would be unacceptable.

No consolation prize would be handed out for coming in second, much less ending up tied for third with the Spurs.

Dumars and Davidson bluntly believe the Pistons have underachieved since two successive Supreme Court appearances under Larry Brown that resulted in one championship.

Their goal was inflexible: Graduate Finishing School with honors or presume expulsion.

On the "flip side" assistant Michael Curry — not Terry Porter, a leading candidate for the Suns' vacancy, or Dave Cowens — is certain to succeed Saunders.

The former Pistons guard, union president and league official was a Dumars' appointment last summer.

Clearly, Curry was placed in position to inherit management's enduring grand expectations (that cannot be realized unless a relatively young, established big man is imported) should its objective prove unattainable.

At least Flip's coaching finally helped the Big Ticket get to the Big Dance, zaps column contributor Michael Dortheimer.

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No disrespect to the Lakers, whose dominance of the defending champion Spurs in a quartet of fourth quarters confirmed their once-automatic annual Finals' reservation, but San Antonio wasn't going to beat L.A. with a "Manure" Ginobili.

That's the unarguable end to that story.

Ginobili was the team's best player all season until the come-from-behind, seven-game triumph over the Hornets left the Argentine attacker staggering and subdued due to a throbbing ankle. His single-digit scoring in each of the Spurs' four losses explains everything.

The Spurs get criticized for failing to repeat, but it's not as if they haven't had legit excuses.

In 2000, Tim Duncan was out with a knee injury.

In 2004, they were denied by a timekeeper with a numb trigger finger and Derek Fisher's supernatural shot.

In 2006, Duncan had an agonizing ankle injury and there was the infamous Ginobili bonehead foul of Dirk Nowitzki in Game 7.

In 2008, Ginobili was at half (at best) speed.

While in San Antonio, a friend of a friend went to Brent Barry's house before Game 4. Barry has one of those little basket setups in one of the rooms for his 2-year-old son.

Sure enough, the kid is shooting with form from different spots away from the basket . . . and downing them.

After a series of makes, Brent directed, "Now do your Manu Ginobili impression," whereupon his kid took the ball and made a layup . . . then crashed/flopped to the floor.

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Retired fireman Steve Conti is praying TNT's Doug Collins gets the Bulls gig and goes back to the perm.

"I can't handle anymore second quarter "big possessions" and "that's a five-point turnaround" on a turnover. Not to mention Collins' 50-to-55 keys to the game, including the "importance of finishing quarters and the halves on a strong note."

If Collins can qualify as a retread, underlines column contributor Peter Oliver, why can't a team have the guts to hire Mark Jackson or another ex-player who hasn't already bored multiple rosters to rebel?

"Wouldn't you want to think outside of the box instead of inside the same box? They say in business the sign of an idiot is someone who does the same things and expects better results."

FYI: Mark Jackson was notified by Steve Kerr the Suns plan to hire someone with NBA coaching experience.

This stance was brought to you by Phoenix's personnel commander, who had no front office experience when hired last summer. Whereas Kerr had no background to guide him, I'm guessing Jackson learned a thing or two about coaching from playing the game for 17 regular seasons.

Does anyone honestly believe if Steve Nash retired tomorrow morning and wanted to coach the Suns we would hear one word about his lack of knowhow?

He would have the job by nightfall.

Peter Vecsey covers the NBA for the New York Post.